Pedigree Profile: Monday Morning Qb

Monday Morning Qb might not be a household name, but the Maryland-bred 3-year-old has performed well against stakes company in his home state, winning the Heft S. and placing second in the Federico Tesio S.

The Oct. 3 Preakness (G1) at Pimlico could be next on the agenda for Monday Morning Qb. The final leg of the restructured Triple Crown would mark a significant step up in class for the dark bay colt, though from a pedigree perspective, he warrants respect as a stoutly-bred youngster with the potential to handle classic distances just fine.

Monday Morning Qb hails from the first crop of foals sired by Imagining, a remarkably durable and long-winded Phipps Stable homebred. A son of stamina influence Giant’s Causeway, Imagining was produced by the A.P. Indy mare Daydreaming, a three-time graded stakes winner running a mile or farther.

In turn, Daydreaming is a daughter of Get Lucky, a graded stakes winner best known as the dam of Vosburgh (G1) winner Girolamo, Pilgrim (G3) winner Accelerator, and also Supercharger, who foaled 2010 Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Super Saver plus two-turn graded stakes winners Cyrus Alexander and Brethren.

Imagining was slow to mature, winning his first graded stakes at the age of five, but thereafter he developed into a high-class turf star over distances ranging from 1 1/8 miles to 1 1/2 miles. A front-running victory in the 1 3/8-mile Man o’ War (G1) ranked as his signature victory, and while it’s too early to draw definite conclusions regarding Imagining’s prowess as a sire, it seems safe to conclude he’ll sire primarily long-winded runners on both dirt and turf.

Similar potential is offered by the bottom half of Monday Morning Qb’s pedigree. There isn’t a lot of data to analyze when it comes to his dam, since Monday Morning Qb is the first foal produced by How My Heart Works, who scored her lone victory sprinting 5 1/2 furlongs at Laurel Park.

But How My Heart Works seems destined to pass on stamina thanks to her deep and classy pedigree. Not only is she a daughter of Not For Love (the damsire of Kentucky Derby winner California Chrome), she was produced by the Awesome Again mare Formalities Aside, making How My Heart Works a half-sister to the graded stakes-placed routers First Mondays and Awesome Flower.

Awesome Again has certainly proven to be a source of stamina. Winner of the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), Awesome Again has sired a multitude of elite route runners, including Horse of the Year Ghostzapper, Preakness (G1) winner Oxbow, eight-time Grade 1 winner Game On Dude, and Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1) winners Round Pond and Ginger Punch.

It remains to be seen whether Monday Morning Qb has the talent to hold his own against the best of his generation. But he certainly has the pedigree to vie for victory over classic distances.